Seismic expression of miocene carbonate platform and reservoir characterization through geophysical approach: application in central Luconia, offshore Malaysia

A substantial proportion of proven oil and gas reserves of the world is contained in the carbonate reservoir. It is estimated that about 60% of the world's oil and 40% of gas reserves are confined in carbonate reservoirs. Exploration and development of hydrocarbons in carbonate reservoirs are much more challenging due to poor seismic imaging and reservoir heterogeneity caused by diagenetic changes. Evaluation of carbonate reservoirs has been a high priority for researchers and geoscientists working in the petroleum industry mainly due to the challenges presented by these highly heterogeneous reservoir rocks. It is essential for geoscientists, petrophysicists, and engineers to work together from initial phases of exploration and delineation of the pool through mature stages of production, to extract as much information as possible to produce maximum hydrocarbons from the field for the commercial viability of the project. In the absence of the well-log data, the properties are inferred from the inversion of seismic data alone. In oil and gas exploration and production industries, seismic inversion is proven as a tool for tracing the subsurface reservoir facies and their fluid contents. In this paper, seismic inversion demonstrates the understanding of lithology and includes the full band of frequency in our initial model to incorporate the detailed study about the basin for prospect evaluation. 3D seismic data along with the geological & petrophysical information and electrologs acquired from drilled wells are used for interpretation and inversion of seismic data to understand the reservoir geometry and facies variation including the distribution of intervening tight layers within the Miocene carbonate reservoir in the study area of Central Luconia. The out-come of the seismic post-stack inversion technique shows a better subsurface lithofacies and fluid distribution for delineation and detailed study of the reservoir.

Automated summary

This paper discusses the characteristics, challenges, and evaluation methods of carbonate reservoirs, as well as the application of seismic inversion technology in interpreting subsurface reservoir properties.